Posted on 05/15/2003 9:03:31 AM PDT by ethical
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/122111_racialslur15.html
Teacher accused of racial slur
Man suspended after using offensive language with students
A teacher at Cleveland High School in Seattle was suspended with pay after reportedly referring to an African American student as a "n- - - - -" in front of his classmates.
The incident happened during a computer class May 2. Several sources say the teacher became upset when a sophomore called an assignment "gay," sometimes used as a general derogatory term. The teacher, a white male, reportedly called the teen out into the hall and asked him how he'd like to be called a "n- - - - -."
Brenda Little, deputy general counsel for Seattle Public Schools, said the teacher then walked back into the classroom with the boy, saying to the class, " 'Well, I guess the n- - - - - can come back in.'
"He's not denying he said that," Little said.
The boy's mother contacted the Seattle chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and complained.
Last Thursday, Little met with Cleveland principal Ted Howard, the student, his parents and representatives from the NAACP and the school district. The next day, the teacher was suspended with pay and the district started an investigation.
Little said a school district investigator interviewed Cleveland students Tuesday and may complete his investigation as early as tomorrow. Penalties for harassment are progressive and vary from a verbal reprimand to firing, she said.
Little said though the teacher admitted to the racial slur, the district is remaining "completely neutral" until the investigation is complete.
"We're trying to see the context, and we're also going to measure the impact on the listener," she said.
The teacher, whose name was not released by the school district, declined a request for an interview. Neither the boy nor his mother could be reached for comment yesterday.
Seattle Public Schools' anti-harassment policy prohibits harassment based on national origin, race, sexual orientation and other factors. The policy defines harassment as "unwelcome conduct or communication (which) has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual's educational or work performance, or of creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive educational or work environment."
The NAACP's Seattle branch is holding a news conference about the incident at 11 a.m. today at Mount Zion Baptist Church, 1634 19th Ave. E. Phyllis Beaumonte, education chairwoman of the Seattle branch, said association members believe the district's anti-harassment policy does not do enough to protect students from racism.
"The NAACP is concerned the policy is not specific enough as it relates to using racist terminology by a teacher to a student," said Beaumonte, who acknowledged that she has not read the entire policy.
"That not only affects the student's self-esteem, it affects how they function in a classroom," she said. "It also affects the whole atmosphere in the school when teachers are allowed to use that term in front of other students. It gives them the feeling that if the teacher can use it, then anybody can."
Seattle Public Schools spokeswoman Lynn Steinberg said the district's policy is not ambiguous.
"We have very clear policies about what is and what isn't acceptable," Steinberg said. "We take matters like this very seriously. When we got this allegation we took immediate action."
John Dunn, president of the Seattle Education Association teachers union, said in a written statement that it appears the teacher used the term to make a point about inappropriate language. "It seems his intent was not to offend anyone," he said, adding, "(the) SEA does not condone the use of the word in any context because of its history."
Cleveland principal Howard, who is African American, said the teacher is a former Microsoft Corp. employee hired last fall for his computer expertise. He is teaching for the first time at Cleveland, Howard said, and this is the first complaint against him.
Howard said the incident is the second of its kind in his 13 years at the school. The other occurred last fall, he said, when a black computer technician working in an office reported hearing a racial slur used during a conversation between two teachers in an adjoining classroom.
The school district investigated the allegation, received contradictory information from both sides and determined there wasn't enough evidence to pursue it, Howard said.
About 90 percent of Cleveland's student population is made up of racial minorities. Black students make up the largest group at the school, about 40 percent. Five of the school's 56 employees are black, including one teacher and one counselor.
Howard said he's concerned that the recent incident may cast a negative light on the school, which has been making efforts to improve its less-than-stellar reputation.
Cleveland started an Infotech Academy, a smaller school within the school, two years ago and plans to start three other themed academies with similarly small class sizes next fall. The school has benefited from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grants and ongoing support from a group of community leaders committed to the Infotech project. Howard said he's worried that all may be overshadowed.
"We've got all these good things happening," said Howard, who is retiring after this year. "We work hard trying to get a reputation. I don't want to be the school that the NAACP makes a point on. I've had white teachers all along and never had any complaints like this."
Howard said he sent a letter to district managers and Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Joseph Olchefske strongly suggesting that the teacher be fired if the investigation finds him at fault.
"I want to make sure I'm on the record that I would not like to see a person like that working in this school or any other school," he said.
P-I reporter Deborah Bach can be reached at 206-448-8197 or deborahbach@seattlepi.com
The incident happened during a computer class May 2. Several sources say the teacher became upset when a sophomore called an assignment "gay," ... Brenda Little, deputy general counsel for Seattle Public Schools, said the teacher then walked back into the classroom with the boy, saying to the class, " 'Well, I guess the n- - - - - can come back in.'Sophomore calls assignment "gay" ... Teacher calls student "nigger." I fail to see the equivalence.
To homosexualists calling something (in this case a school assignment) "gay" is just the same as calling another person "nigger".
No. I looked up "fag" in the dictionary . . . it said a type of cigarette.
My mistake.
This "new" definition has been around for at least ten years. My children and their friends have been using the term gay as an adjective, meaning not cool, for many years.
I think having the word gay mean uncool does nothing to legitimize homosexual perversion. I think it does just the opposite.
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